Shark Week: A History of Fear and Fiction
1975 would be the year that would forever change the future of a species. As the movie JAWS hit theaters, making over $7 million dollars in its opening weekend, the violent and vengeful personification of sharks depicted in the film had audiences quivering with fear for the next 45 years. JAWS would become a successful movie franchise followed by JAWS 2 (1978), JAWS 3D (1983), and JAW: The Revenge (1987).
Capitalizing on the JAWS franchise, Shark Week first aired on the Discovery Channel in the summer of 1988 mixing sensationalism and science with entertainment-focused and even fictional programming. Its successful formula prompted the successful Discovery Chanel show Mythbusters to test shark movie magic with head to head race between Olympic Gold Medalist Michael Phelps and a virtual Great White Shark. There is no shortage of "creativity" in the line-up of feature programming. The antithesis of this outrageous programming is the critically reviled Megalodon: The New Evidence which proposed that the long-extinct ancestor of the shark "may" still be roaming the oceans.
As Shark Week's ratings continued to grow higher year after year, boycotts and negative press from the science community forced the network to change its tune. Scientists and educators felt betrayed by the network's fearsome portrayal of sharks, as the facts increasingly became secondary to the entertainment value of the shows. These programs would do little to change mainstream attitudes towards sharks and would even hinder much-needed aid and support towards the conservation and protection of the species as illegal finning grew rampantly across the globe.
In 2015, Discovery President Rich Ross promised to remove inaccurate depictions from future lineups of Shark Week and the rest of the Network. Ross would go on to say that his idea of an ideal Discovery show is one that “makes people care and do something about it.” Though Shark Week has gradually changed it's messaging over the years, you can still find overly sensationalized programming, like this year's opening night feature, "Tyson Vs Jaws: Rumble on the Reef" (Sunday 8/9).
Shark Week 2020 combines the efforts of scientists and celebrities as they come together to appreciate these awe-inspiring creatures. In addition to Mike Tyson's opening night fight, you will see former basketball player Shaquille O'Neal hosting with Dude Perfect and former NASA Scientist turned youtuber, Mark Rober, on the show "Shaq Attack" (Monday 8/10). Even Will Smith and Snopp Dogg join the ranks with "Will Smith: Off The Deep End"(Tuesday 8/11) and "Sharkadelic Summer" (Thursday 8/13).
You can watch SharkWeeek on network television on The Discovery Channel starting at 8pm starting August 9th or stream it online at https://www.discovery.com/shark-week.
If there are any questions between what is fact and fiction, you can always ask our Education Director, Cameron Jenness and his team of naturalists! Stop on by, comment on social media, or email us at Info@thewaterfrontcenter.org!
